What is 07.12.13?

June 24, 2013

The Inyo Register has launched a campaign to help Inyo County residents remember the date of July 12, 2013 in anticipation of a first annual project slated for publication in August. File photo

Owens Valley residents who read The Inyo Register, frequent Facebook or check out public bulletin boards have probably see it by now: 07.12.13.
And along with sightings of the digits have probably come some questions, chief among them being: “What does it mean?”
The theories have been abundant, and entertaining.
Are these lottery numbers?
Is this some sort of Dooms Day prophecy?
Is this the combination to a safe as part of some major cash giveaway?
Is Publisher Dion Agee planning to tightrope walk across the Owens River Gorge on this date?
No, these are not lottery numbers.
No, we’re pretty sure the world was supposed to end last December.
No, if we had that kind of cash … well.
And no. Mr. Agee will actually be high-wire walking across the Gorge in October.*
As many readers guessed, 07.12.13 is Friday, July 12, 2013, and while nothing special is happening on that day, per se, The Inyo Register is encouraging all residents to commit the date to memory as part of a brand-new project.
The first annual A Day in the Life of Inyo County publication will essentially be a compilation of reader-submitted written vignettes and photos describing – as the name of the publication implies – what they did that day.
“We are incredibly pleased to announce our first annual A Day in the Life of Inyo County publication,” Agee said. “Residents of all backgrounds can capture and share what their day was like on July 12, 2013, from a 9-5 work day to playing in one of the Eastern Sierra’s various playgrounds, from the extreme to the mundane.”
The idea is that each vignette will become part of a tapestry that represents life and living in Inyo County on this one particular day in history.
“Imagine a journal entry of your day … a snapshot of your world, a representation of what makes your life special and/or unique to you,” Agee said. “We will compile these photos and stories into a special keepsake that will, in essence, tell the story of our county from the people’s perspective. Are you a producer or a consumer? Do you participate, or do you spectate? Are you the driver or the passenger? Either way, you are a part of our great community. Chronicle your day, share it with us and become part of our history.”
A Day in the Life of Inyo County will be a full-color supplemental insert, published Saturday, Aug. 3 as a stand-alone journal/keepsake. Again, readers are asked to remember Friday, July 12, so that they can chronicle what they did that day, and submit their write-up and photos no later than 5 p.m. Friday, July 19. (For rules and other details, see ad on pg. 5.)
“We are taking a different spin on a foundation of social media and asking for user-generated content that we can exchange via the print-medium, Agee said. “We look forward to sharing your story and building an annual memoir of Inyo County: who we are and what we do.”